Tech

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Just Said These Weird-Looking Goggles Are 'The New Desktop'

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Microsoft executives testing HoloLens
AP

We just bumped into Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, here at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

He was about to take the stage for a panel put on by Salesforce.com about the future of tech.

He told us something rather surprising.

He said that Microsoft's new computerized goggles, HoloLens are "the new desktop."

When worn, HoloLens, powered by Microsoft software called Windows Holographic, project animations unto the visible world. They are not a virtual reality goggles, they are augmented reality goggles.

Nadella said the one incredible application for HoloLens that impresses him is that you can put them on and drive a rover around Mars, all while feeling as though the terrain of Mars has come to your office or living room.

Business Insider's Matt Rosoff recently tried HoloLens and was blown away. He said, "I just had a 40-minute in-person demonstration of HoloLens, Microsoft's new computer headset, and I'm convinced that personal computing is on the verge of a major change."

"In 10 years or so, people will be using head-mounted displays that project 3D images that you can interact with in actual space."

One reason Nadella's pronouncement is so surprising is that several consumer technology companies have tried, and failed, to convince normal people to wear bulky headsets to experience content in a new way. A couple years ago, the TV companies all came out with 3D TV sets. Then came Google with its now shuttered Google Glass.

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Nicholas Carlson was Business Insider's global editor-in-chief from 2017 to 2024, overseeing its emergence as a National Magazine Award, Emmy, SABEW, and Pulitzer Prize-winning global news organization with more than 500 journalists reaching 200 million readers and viewers each month.Before that, he was Business Insider's chief correspondent.Carlson is also the author of "Marissa Mayer and the Fight To Save Yahoo!"He was an Executive Producer of "Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV," which, during its debut week, was the most-watched television show on any streamer and the most-watched show in Max history.His investigative reporting rewrote the histories of Facebook, Twitter, and Groupon. He also wrote the award-winning features "The Truth About Marissa Mayer: An Unauthorized Biography" and "THE COST OF WINNING: Tim Armstrong, Patch, And The Struggle To Save AOL."Longform.org named "THE COST OF WINNING" the best long-form business story of 2013.Carlson's coverage of Yahoo won Digiday's award for Best Editorial Achievement of the year in 2014.In 2015 Carlson wrote a New York Times Magazine cover story, "What Happened When Marissa Mayer Tried to Be Steve Jobs." It was a finalist for a Mirror Award for best in-depth/enterprise reporting.Carlson began his journalism career at InternetNews.com and then Gawker Media's Valleywag. He went to Davidson College. Disclosure: Nicholas is an investor in private and public companies and adheres to Insider Inc's Conflict of Interest policy, which you can read here.